CarComplaints.com Notes: The Saturn Ion was a compact bundle of hurt wrapped up in a cheap, plastic shell. With so many defective components and a safety rating that a bicycle would be ashamed of, it’s a blessing this car only lasted five model years.

The 2003 (and 2004) Ion was cursed with GM’s flawed attempt at a continuously variable transmission, known as the VTi. It had such a high failure rate that a class-action lawsuit was filed against GM, eventually prompting a settlement and a warranty extension. GM discontinued the VTi for the 2005 model year – surprise, surprise.

The 2003 Ion was also part of one of the largest and most controversial recalls of all-time. A defective ignition switch in millions of GM vehicles could accidentally turn the car off and disable important safety components like the power steering and airbags. The problem resulted in at least 13 deaths, but what made it worse was that GM knew about the issue for 10 years before doing anything about it.

So was the transmission warranty extended? Yeah. Was the ignition switch recalled? Eventually. Is this car safe to drive? Not really. Honestly, you’re better off looking elsewhere.

2.9

hardly worth mentioning
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
48,000 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2003 Saturn Ion wheels / hubs problems

wheels / hubs problem

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2003 Saturn Ion Owner Comments

problem #1

May 182008

Ion 4-cyl

  • 48,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Ion. The vehicle has Firestone infiniti tires, size 195/60R15 (na). On three isolated events, within a five week period, the valve stem on the tires failed. The tires lost pressure overnight on two occasions. During the most recent failure, while driving 55 mph, the tire lost complete pressure and the contact nearly lost control of the vehicle. He still has possession of one of the tires. The dealer stated that they would not be responsible because they were not the manufacturers. The failure and current mileages were 48,000. Updated 07/15/08 updated7/15/08.

- Edison, NJ, USA

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